Sinker



F. ASFRER April 8, 1941..

ASINKER4 Filed Dec. 19,4 1959 Patented Apr. 8, 194i tJNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in fishing weights; and it is among the objects of the invention to provide a combination sinker usable either as a sliding weight or for positive attachment to a line.

Another object is to provide a sinker so shaped as to anchor itself in soft bottoms, yet minimize the possibility of its being caught or wedged between rocks and the like.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of my invention. It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to this disclosure of species of my invention, as I may adopt variant embodiments thereof within` the scope of the claims.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a sinker embodying the improvements of my invention; and

Figure 2 is a similar View taken from another side of the sinker.

In terms of broad inclusion, the sinker of my invention comprises a body weight having a bore therethrough for sliding on a line, and also having a fastening eye for positive attachment to a line. The body is preferably cast with lobes projecting from the sides thereof with the bore opening out on two of the lobes; and fastening eyes are preferably provided on another pair of the lobes.

In greater detail, and referring to the drawing, the sinker of my invention comprises a body weight 2 of heavy material, such as hardened lead consisting of say 50% lead and 50% tin. The sinker is preferably made in different sizes ranging from 1 to 16 ounces. In order to minimize the possibility of the sinker becoming caught or wedged between rocks and the like, and to give good balance to the weight for casting purposes, I preferably provide body 2 with pairs of oppositely extending lobes 3, 4 and 6 projecting from the sides of the body,

Lobes 3 and 4 are of substantially equal lengths,

but lobes 3 have flat noses while lobes 4 are relatively pointed. Lobes 6 on the other hand are shorter and quite rounded as shown in Figure 2. When the sinker lies flat on a sandy or muddy bottom one of the shorter lobes or knobs 6 always projects downwardly to embed itself in the bottom thus acting as a fluke to anchor the sinker. At the same time, the rounded character of these knobsprevents their being caught in crevices and between rocks.

So that the sinker may slide on a line, a bore l is provided through body 2. This bore extends through the center of the body and opens out on the flat surfaces of the oppositely extending lobes 3. When used as a sliding sinker the line is threaded through the bore above the leader in the usual manner; the advantage of the sliding sinker being of course that the line pulls freely through the sinker from the hook end to give the fisherman a better feel of light strikes. The size of bore 1 preferably varies from say T1@ to 1/4 inch, depending upon the size of the weight, the larger bores being used with the heavier weights.

Fastening eyes 8 are also provided on body 2 for positively attaching the sinker to a line. These eyes are arranged on lobes 4, and are preferably formed by a wire 9 terminating in exposed loops at the pointed ends of lobes 4. Copper wire is preferably used, varying from 20 to 12 gauge depending upon the size of the weight. The wire is bent to form substantially parallel legs' lying in bores extending through the body transversely of open bore l, onevleg lying on each side of bore l. The wire ts tightly in the wire holding bores, a condition preferably obtained by casting the body weight about the wire.

By having fastening eyes 8 on opposite sides of the body the sinker may be used either as an end weight or attached between parts of the tackle. This feature together with the provision of bore l makes my combination sinker adaptable for use in many ways. This is important because lead is heavy and my all-purpose sinker reduces the number of weights that have to be carried in the tackle box.

I claim:

1. A sinker comprising a body weight having lobes projecting from the sides thereof and a bore opening out on two of said lobes, and a fastening eye on another lobe.

2. A sinker comprising a body weight having oppositely extending lobes and a bore opening out on two of said lobes, and a wire embedded in the body transversely of the bore and terminating in exposed loops on another pair of said lobes.

3. A sinker adapted to slide on a line comprising a body weight having lobes projecting from opposite sides of the body and having a bore opening out on a pair of said lobes, said bore providing an open passage through which the line may extend.

4. A sinker adapted to slide on a line comprising a body weight having lobes projecting from opposite sides of the body and having transversely extending bores opening out on pairs of said lobes, one of said bores providing an open passage through which the line may extend.

FRANK ASPRER. 

